US army deserter asks to see lawyer
(Agencies)
Updated: 2004-07-26 13:51

A former U.S. Army sergeant accused of deserting to North Korea and now in Japan receiving medical treatment has asked to speak to a U.S. military lawyer, a spokesman for the U.S. military forces in Japan said on Monday. But the spokesman said he was unable to comment on speculation that this was a first step toward Jenkins seeking a plea bargain concerning charges that he deserted in 1965.

Former US army sergeant Charles Jenkins, accused of deserting to North Korea in 1965, uses a cane as he walks to a bus with his wife, former abductee by North Korea Hitomi Soga, as they arrive at Tokyo's Haneda airport July 18, 2004. [Reuters]

Jenkins, 64, arrived in Japan for medical care on July 18 with his Japanese wife, Hitomi Soga, and their two daughters after the family was reunited in Jakarta on July 9.

Washington has said it had the right to seek Jenkins' custody so he can face court martial on desertion and other charges, but has put off doing so while Jenkins underwent health tests.

"He's basically requested to speak with a military lawyer and we've passed, through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, some information about the U.S. military area defense counsel system," said Col. Victor Warzinski, public affairs director for U.S. Forces Japan.

Tokyo has asked that Jenkins be given special consideration, and speculation has been mounting that he may seek to plea-bargain as a way to resolve the impasse.

Japanese Foreign Minister Yoriko Kawaguchi said on Sunday that she was confident that Japan and the United States could work out a solution over Jenkins' fate.

Jenkins met Soga after she was abducted by North Korean agents in 1978. Soga returned to Japan with four other abductees in 2002 but had to leave her husband and two daughters behind.

Soga wants her family to be able to live together in her homeland, and her plight has touched many Japanese hearts.

Alleged US army defector who lived in North Korea for decades, Charles Robert Jenkins (R), his Japanese wife Hitomi Soga (L) and his two daughters Brenda (2nd R) and Mika. The US said it will seek legal custody of Jenkins if he goes to Japan. [AFP]

"I don't think there are any bilateral issues that can't be resolved by Japan and the United States," Kawaguchi said during an appearance on public broadcaster NHK. "I think it's desirable to hold talks and resolve it as soon as possible."

STILL IN HOSPITAL

U.S. Ambassador to Japan Howard Baker has been quoted by Japanese media as suggesting a plea bargain would be one way to resolve the standoff, but another U.S. official late last week denied that was a likely outcome.

"No one I know suggests there is a bargain ... No suggestion about it," Kyodo news agency quoted Deputy Undersecretary of Defense Richard Lawless as saying in Washington on Friday.

Washington says Jenkins slipped into North Korea one January night in 1965 and joined Pyongyang's propaganda machine.

His American relatives say there is no proof Jenkins defected and insist he was kidnapped and brainwashed by North Korea.

U.S. President Bush is thought reluctant to give Jenkins special treatment while U.S. soldiers are fighting in Iraq and ahead of the U.S. presidential election in November.

But Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi has spent considerable political capital to send Japanese troops on a non-combat mission to Iraq, partly at Washington's nudging.

A Japanese doctor treating Jenkins said on Friday that his health had improved since he arrived in Tokyo and that initial tests had not found any serious illness.

But the doctor said Jenkins needed more tests to rule out a major illness and should stay in hospital to recover from stress.

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